law
25 May 2020

Returning lawyers to family disputes will result in more mediation - Little

From Morning Report, 6:16 am on 25 May 2020

The Minister of Justice says returning lawyers to the early stages of family disputes should help parents settle differences out of court.

The government has passed legislation under urgency allowing parents to use lawyers throughout disputes involving children, restoring access to legal aid, and establishing family justice liasion officers.

But recommended improvements to help warring families settle their differences out of court, including scrapping the need for pre-court mediation and introducing free counselling, haven't been addressed.

Andrew Little told RNZ reporter Catherine Hutton why reintroducing lawyers to the process would result in more out of court mediation.